Bagels, and similar breadstuffs, are usually eaten after being sliced open with a knife. A bagel is a breadstuff that is roughly in the shape of a torus. Bagels are customarily sliced such that two slices result, each having a flat surface approximating that of an annulus. Her, "bagel" is to include not only bagels but also similar small breadstuffs such as rolls, biscuits, buns, croissants, Brootchen and the like, and other objects in need of being held while an operation is performed on them.
It is difficult, if not impossible for one satisfactorily to slice a bagel without the bagel being held. It is not uncommon for persons to pinch a bagel between their thumb and other fingers, to insert a knife blade between the web of the pinching hand and the bagel, and then to slice the bagel by moving the knife away from the pinching hand. The opportunity for cutting oneself by executing this procedure is readily apparent. An additional deficiency of this procedure is the inherent difficulty of making a straight cut that produces two essentially equal slices.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a compact, hand-held device, and a procedure for using the device, that results in safe and accurate slicing of bagels. It is safe in that the operator's hands are kept distant from the cutting knife. It is accurate in that slices are made along a plane that passes through the middle of the bagel for all sizes of bagels normally encountered. Further objectives of this invention include providing a hand-held device that allows the user to view the bagel while it is being cut, a device that is easy to clean, a device that accommodates to various sizes of bagels, a device that grips the bagel without puncturing its crust, and a device that is inherently inexpensive to construct.
Fixed, non-hand-held devices used to facilitate the slicing of bagels are known. These devices do not meet the objectives of the present invention.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,249,445, 4,399,989, 4,550,636, and 4,747,331 disclose devices comprising a pedestal supporting a generally vertical wall against which a bagel is urged by a movable member while the bagel is sliced by a knife moving though a guide that is parallel to, and a fixed distance from, the wall. These devices are generally bulky and heavy (thus not readily portable), not adjustable nor self adjusting (thus slicing may not always be through the middle of the bagel), and fairly complicated (thus rather difficult to clean and to construct).
U.S. Pat. No. 4,807,505 discloses a pair of blocks affixed to a base, separated by a slot, each having a facing cavity shaped to receive half of a bagel, and with the top 70% of one base hinged to swing away from the other block. The swingable portion contains a spike used to impale a bagel to inhibit its movement while being cut. It appears that when used a right handed person would compress the two blocks from above with fingers of the left hand, insert a knife held in the right hand between the fingers of the left hand, and slice downward through the slot. The knife blade passes uncomfortably close to the fingers of the left hand. Since the spacing between the cavity walls is fixed, and only one spike is used, smaller bagels and partially-cut, full-size bagels will have little support. Limited access to the lowest parts of the device complicates cleaning the device. Care must be observed when cleaning the spike, and when the swingable portion is "open," not to be injured by the spike. A need remains in the art for a device that is free of sharp parts, that keeps hands remote from the cutting instruments, that is easy to clean, and that will firmly grip small and full-sized bagels while they are being cut.